In this episode of Called to the Bar: International Law Over Drinks, Ntina Tzouvala (UNSW) is joined by Zohra Ahmed (Boston University School of Law) and Nasia Hadjigeorgiou (University of Central Lancashire, Cyprus) to examine the law, history, and politics of foreign military bases.
Against the backdrop of escalating conflict in the Middle East, the conversation explores how the US and UK came to maintain extensive global networks of military bases: from post-colonial enclaves like Cyprus and the Chagos Archipelago to status of forces agreements (SOFAs) that underpin US bases worldwide. The episode unpacks the legal distinctions between these models and what they reveal about sovereignty, consent, and enduring forms of imperial power.
Drawing on recent developments in international law, including the ICJ’s Chagos Advisory Opinion, the discussion considers whether existing legal frameworks offer meaningful avenues to challenge the continued presence of foreign bases. It also reflects on the evolving uses of these spaces - from warfare to detention - and what they tell us about the relationship between international law, militarism, and political economy.
Recommendations:
-Nasia's EJIL piece: https://academic.oup.com/ejil/article/33/4/1125/6825293?guestAccessKey=
-Nasia's blog post: https://verfassungsblog.de/why-us-sovereign-bases-in-greenland-would-violate-international-law/
-Zohra's YJIL piece: https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/faculty_scholarship/3712/
-Daniel Immerwahr, How to Hide an Empire: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/how-to-hide-an-empire-9781473545335
Sound production: Jamie Guilfoyle
Music: Sam Barsh, Oils of au lait